This disclosure relates generally to a bearing assembly and, more particularly, to a bearing assembly support arrangement that accommodates thermal expansion and contraction of the bearing assembly and supporting components.
Bearing assemblies are well known and used in many environments. Some bearing assemblies are used to support rotatable shafts. In one example, the rotatable shaft is a generator rotor shaft that is selectively rotated by a turbomachine to drive an aircraft generator. When driven, the aircraft generator produces electric power that is supplied to various components.
Bearing assemblies are often supported by relatively lightweight housing materials, particularly in aircraft environments. The lightweight housing materials typically have a greater coefficient of thermal expansion than the materials of the bearing assembly. Accordingly, the housing may contract on the bearing assembly in cold environments, which can cause binding in the bearing assembly. In warmer environments, the housing may expand away from the bearing assembly, which can cause looseness in the bearing assembly. Supports have been used to mitigate these thermal expansion differences, but the bearing assemblies still experience binding and looseness even with the supports.
FIG. 1 shows a prior art bearing support arrangement having a bearing assembly 10 and housing 12. A support 14 is pressed into a liner 16 which is pressed into recess 17 within the housing 12. A radially facing surface 18 of the support 14 directly contacts an outer bearing race 19 of the bearing assembly 10. In this prior art arrangement, the outer bearing race 19 of the bearing assembly 10 is clamped axially between a retainer 20 and a support portion 22 of the support 14. The retainer 20 applies an axial force in a direction A directly to at least the outer race. Even though the prior art arrangement of FIG. 1 includes the support 14, the bearing assembly 10 still may bind and become loose as the housing 12 contracts and expands relative to the bearing assembly 10.